GLOBAL INITIATIVE FOR INCLUSIVE ICTs
Promoting the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the Digital Age
Scaling Up Mobile Accessibility:
Civil Society and Operators At Work
Accessible Americas II:
Information and Communication for ALL
Panel on Successful International
ICT Accessibility Experiences
Medellin, Colombia 4, 5 and 6 November 2015
By Axel Leblois
President and Executive Director, G3ict
www.g3ict.org
The Opportunity We Saw Today:
Mobile Apps and Services Can Leverage Terrific
Embedded Smart Phone Functionalities

Visual
 Text-to-Speech

Hearing
 Video Relay Service with
sign language

Speech
 Peer-to-peer video for
sign language

Dexterity
 Voice recognition for
controls and input

Cognition
 Icon interface
Slide 2
Emerging Mobile Accessibility Features

New forms of wearable computing

Sign language recognition

Secure sign-in with bio-recognition

Interpretation of visual environment

Guidance for cognitively impaired
persons

Interaction with devices to control
physical environment

Internet of Things

Real time captioning in wearable glasses
Slide 3
The Gap:

Latin America: more phones than people, but:
 Actual penetration over population is uneven, 70% on
average in Latin America
 Smart phones just passed 50% of new sales

30% to 35% is the penetration of smart phones over
population, likely far less among persons with
disabilities, especially among senior citizens
Slide 4
SO, HOW TO CLOSE THE GAP?
HOW TO ENSURE THAT THIS
UNPRECEDENTED LEVEL OF INNOVATION
BENEFITS ALL PERSONS WITH
DISABILITIES?
HOW TO PROMOTE ADOPTION?
Slide 5
SO, HOW TO CLOSE THE GAP?
HOW TO ENSURE THAT THIS
UNPRECEDENTED LEVEL OF INNOVATION
BENEFITS ALL PERSONS WITH
DISABILITIES?
HOW TO PROMOTE ADOPTION?
Scaling Up!
Success Stories
Mobile Operators, Civil Society, Governments in Action
Japan, USA, France, Turkey, Colombia, Mexico,
Denmark
Slide 6
Example #1: Japan The Raku Raku

NTT DoCoMo Market Situation in 2002
 NTT DoCoMo market share: 51%
 Saturation of young adult and adult market
segment
 Opportunity: rate of utilization decreased
significantly with age (90%+ aged 20 to 50; less
than 30% above 70)

Decision to tackle issue across
organization, products and services
 Adoption of Universal Design principles
 Cell phone handsets, stores & services
Slide 7
Source: NTT DoCoMo presentation at
ITU – UNESCAP meeting in Bangkok, August 26, 2009
Slide 8
Sales Status of the Raku-Raku Phone Series
RakuRaku
phoneV
2008.8
15M units sold
As of June 2009
20M as of June 2013
：3G(FOMA）
：2G(mova)
500
RakuRaku RakuRaku
phone
phone
1999.10
2001.9
99.9
00.9
RakuRaku
phone Ｓ
2002.9
01.9
ＦＯＭＡ
RakuRaku
phone
ＦＯＭＡ 2005.8
RakuRaku
phone
2004.9
RakuRaku
phone
2003.9
02.9
03.9
ＦＯＭＡ
RakuRaku
phone
2006.9
04.9
Slide 9
RakuRaku
phone
2007.8
RakuRaku
phone
basic
2007.4
RakuRaku
phone
Premium
2008.4
RakuRaku
phone
Basic
2009.4
RakuRakuRakuRaku
phone phone
Basic S
S
2008.4 2008.5
RakuRaku
phone simple
2005.12
05.9
06.9
07.9
08.9
Change of penetration rate in Japan
Penetration rate of over 50s has dramatically increased
Penetration rate of mobile phone in 2011
100%
Dramatically increased
75%
50%
25%
0%
20s
30s
40s
50s
60s
70s
Source: Survey on penetration rate of mobile phone by age, NTT DOCOMO
Slide 10
10
2015: Japan National Post Office Watch Service
Initiative with Apple and IBM with Free iPads for
Seniors

Japan Post: a government-owned holding company
that runs 24,000 post offices as well as one of the
world’s biggest banks and Japan’s largest insurer.

Post Office Watch service: employees check in on
elderly clients, offer them consultation services and
report back to family members.

Post now distributes free tablets to elderly persons
with the support of a joint venture between IBM
and Apple.

Apps are designed to help connect Japan’s millions
of seniors with healthcare services and with their
families, with a target of serving 4 to 5 million
families by 2020.
Slide 11
Example #2: USA - AT&T Case Study

Universal Design

AAPAA: involving
persons with disabilities
in designing products
and services

Dedicated marketing

Special rate plans

Customer service

160,000 employees
trained on disability and
accessibility issues
Slide 12
Example #3: France
Multi-stakeholder Accessibility Charter

Government, organizations of persons with
disabilities, operators sign charter with
roadmap and milestones in 2005

Voluntary program with milestones and
monitoring for implementing features with
defined priorities:
1. Necessary features
2. Comfort features
3. Desirable new features and evolution
4. Marketing codification of accessibility features
Slide 13
Types of Metrics Monitored in Roadmad,
Sample of Actual Results:

By 2009:
 Each operator offers between 10 and 20 accessible
handsets
 Implementation of multimodal customer service support
centers for persons with disabilities by each operator

By 2010:
 193 specialized point of sales for accessible solutions in
operation across France
 Personnel trained on disability and accessibility
 Mobile news service launched in sign language
 Launch of multiple mobile services for persons with
disabilities: accessible city services, transportation mobile
guide, accessible parking guide and accessible tourism
web sites etc.)
Slide 14
Example #4 – Audio Description
for Movie Theaters offered by
Operator

“My Dream Partner” free mobile app and service for the
visually impaired, current news, more than 70
columnists’, hundreds of thousands of audio-books,
training programs and practical information

Audio description feature allows users of “My Dream
Partner” to enjoy watching movies in movie theaters
through detailed description of non-dialogue scenes

National roll-out in all Turkish movie-theaters.

Blind movie-goers can choose the “cinema” category,
select the movie and start listening to its synchronized
audio description with their earphones.

Available free-of-charge and open to customers of all
operators who register to My Dream Partner
Slide 15
In Summary: Operators’ Common Success
Factors
 Focused accessibility team coordinating efforts across the
organization









Awareness campaigns
Universal Design strategy
Involving and hiring persons with disabilities
Procurement integrating accessibility
Dedicated marketing plan and service packaging
Accessible point of sales
Accessible web sites and apps
Trained employees and customer service
Alternative modes of communication with customers
Slide 16
CIVIL SOCIETY AND
GOVERNMENTS IN ACTION
Slide 17
Example #5: Colombia - Video Relay and Remote
Interpretation Services for the Deaf

Free for all deaf users

FENASCOL, National
Federation of the Deaf is
the operator

Available and used
nationwide by deaf users

Video Remote
Interpreting now also
available nationwide free
with 30 min cap per call

12,000 users in Colombia

Funded by MinTic

Great replicable option
for Universal Service
Funds
Slide 18
Example #6: the MMF-GARI Database En Español
Made Available in Mexico through IFT, Operators
Slide 19
Success Story #7: Denmark Crowdsourced
Services - Be My Eyes

301,095 Sighted
volunteers

23,376 Blind users

A Network of Eyes: Be My
Eyes is an app that
connects blind people
with volunteer helpers
from around the world via
live video chat
Slide 20
M-Enabling Summit: G3ict’s Annual Global Forum
Promoting Mobile Accessibility Innovation

World largest forum on accessible and assistive
mobile solutions in cooperation with ITU:
Promotes innovation
 Showcases solutions that work
 Fosters dialogue among all stakeholders:
Mobile industry, innovators, policy makers,
advocates, CIOs
 Facilitates networking among global mobile
accessibility stakeholders and sharing of
experience
 540 participants in 2015 from 30 countries

Next Edition June 13-14, 2016, Washington, D.C.
www.m-enabling.com
Slide 21
ITU - International
Telecommunication Union
FCC - Federal Communications
Commission
Companies and Organizations
Supporting the
G3ict Annual M-Enabling Summit
Slide 22
Thank You for your
Attention!
www.g3ict.org
axel_leblois@g3ict.org
Slide 23